Information processing unit

ABSTRACT

An information processing unit, such as a mobile phone, equipped with a fingerprint sensor and which reconciles size reduction with operability at a high level. Adjacent to an operation panel is located a V-shaped groove which contains a first slope stretching away from the operation panel and slanting downward and a second slope stretching further away from the operation panel and slanting upward, where the V-shaped groove contains a fingerprint sweep sensor which detects a fingerprint on a finger moved along the first slope and the second slope.

RELATED APPLICATION

This application is a divisional application of U.S. application Ser.No. 11/014,771, filed Dec. 20, 2004, which application claims priorityunder 35 U.S.C. § 119 of Japanese Application No. 2004-338323 filed Nov.24, 2004 and Japanese Application No. 2003-423598 filed Dec. 19, 2003,and which is a continuation-in-part application of U.S. application Ser.No. 10/849,871, filed May 21, 2004, which application claims priorityunder 35 U.S.C. § 119 of Japanese Application No. 2003-423598 filed Dec.19, 2003, all of which are incorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to information processing units, such asmobile phones including a PHS (Personal Handyphone System), equippedwith a fingerprint sensor and operation keys.

2. Description of the Related Art

Recently, mobile phones have spread at a remarkable pace and havedeveloped as portable information processing units which are equippedwith multiple functions including not only simple telephone functions,but also e-mail functions and enhanced memory functions for storingvarious personal information such as telephone numbers.

Big problems posed by such development of mobile phones include illegaluse of mobile phones and unauthorized outflow of information stored inmobile phones.

One of the conventional techniques used to solve these problems involvesenabling the use of the mobile phone only when a registered personalidentification number is entered.

Since it is troublesome to enter a personal identification number,mobile phones which are equipped with a fingerprint sensor and areenabled only when a registered fingerprint is detected have recentlybeen proposed and actually put on the market (see, for example, JapanesePatent Laid-Open No. 2002-216116 and Japanese Patent Laid-Open No.2002-279412). The fingerprint sensor is on a considerably high level interms of prevention of illegal use and convenience of handling.

Although it is desirable from a security standpoint to mount afingerprint sensor on mobile phones, under circumstances where there isdemand for size and weight reduction of mobile phones and the mobilephones have been downsized close to the limit considering theoperability for users, the question is what fingerprint sensor to mountand in what part of the mobile phones.

Operation keys and a screen essential for the mobile phones are laid outin such a way as to face the user simultaneously under normal use sothat the user can operate the operation key by looking at the screen.Although it is conceivable to install the fingerprint sensor in a spaceprovided on the back face opposite the front face which contains theoperation keys and screen, the fingerprint sensor functions as a kind ofoperation key operated by the user and installing the fingerprint sensoron the back face sacrifices the operability.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2002-216116 and Japanese Patent Laid-OpenNo. 2002-279412 propose the use of a fingerprint sweep sensor whichreads a fingerprint as the user moves a finger at right angles to a linesensor consisting of minute sensors arranged one-dimensionally.

The fingerprint sweep sensor does not require much installation spaceand can be installed on the front face of the mobile phone withoutincreasing the size of the mobile phone, as shown in Japanese PatentLaid-Open No. 2002-216116 and Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2002-279412.Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2002-216116 shows a drawing in which thefingerprint sweep sensor is installed adjacent to the operation keyswhile Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2002-279412 shows a drawing in whichthe fingerprint sweep sensor is installed adjacent to the screen.

However, if the fingerprint sweep sensor is installed adjacent to theoperation keys without taking any measures, there is a danger ofpressing operation keys adjacent to the fingerprint sensor by mistakewhen moving the finger along the fingerprint sensor. Also, if thefingerprint sensor is installed adjacent to the screen, that part of thescreen which is adjacent to the fingerprint sensor may become dirty bybeing touched by fingertips. However, installing the fingerprint sensoron that part of the mobile phone surface which is distant from theoperation keys and screen to prevent the above problems would go counterto the demand for size reduction of the mobile phone.

Also, the fingerprint sweep sensor, which does not require muchinstallation space, can be installed on a flank of the mobile phone. Inthat case, however, the problem of operability remains, as is the casewhen the fingerprint sensor is installed on the back face. The aboveproblems are not specific to mobile phones, but are common toinformation processing units equipped with a fingerprint sensor andoperation keys.

In view of the above circumstances, the present invention has an objectto provide an information processing unit which is equipped with afingerprint sensor and reconciles size reduction with operability at ahigh level.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

To achieve the above object, the present invention provides aninformation processing unit which comprises a casing equipped with acontrol pad, wherein:

the casing comprises, adjacent to the control pad, a groove whichcontains a first slope stretching away from the control pad and slantingdownward and a second slope stretching further away from the control padand slanting upward;

the groove comprises a fingerprint sensor which detects a fingerprint ona finger moved along the first slope and the second slope; and

the first slope and the second slope have mutually different tiltangles.

In the information processing unit according to the present invention,preferably the fingerprint sensor is a fingerprint sweep sensor.

In the information processing unit according to the present invention,since the fingerprint sensor is contained in the groove, the first slopeof the groove prevents operation keys from being pressed inadvertentlywhen a finger is moved along the fingerprint sensor. Also, theinformation processing unit allows the user to move the finger along thefirst slope and second slope by applying it reliably to the fingerprintsensor using both sides of the slopes as a guide. This allows reliabledetection of the fingerprint.

Preferably, the first slope and the second slope have mutually differenttilt angles which are determined from the standpoint of preventingmisoperation and reliably detecting the fingerprint. In that case,preferably the first slope has a larger tilt angle than the secondslope.

If the fingerprint sensor installed in the information processing unitaccording to the present invention is a fingerprint sweep sensor,preferably the fingerprint sweep sensor has a surface protruding abovean inner surface of the groove. Also, preferably the fingerprint sweepsensor is located in the groove in such a way as to hide a ridge linewhere an extension surface of the first slope and an extension surfaceof the second slope meet.

By making the fingerprint sweep sensor protrude above the inner surfaceof the groove and lie at the bottom of the groove under which lies aridge line, it is possible to move the finger in tight contact with thefingerprint sweep sensor, and thus detect the fingerprint reliably.

As described above, by installing the fingerprint sensor adjacent to thecontrol pad and on the same surface as the control pad, the presentinvention can reconcile size reduction with operability at a high level.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an external perspective view of a mobile phone according to anembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a plan view showing a part around a fingerprint sweep sensorof the mobile phone 100 shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along A-A line in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a partially enlarged view of the part enclosed by a chaindouble-dashed line A in FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a structure of the fingerprint sweep sensor;

FIG. 6 is a sectional view of a groove of a mobile phone according to asecond embodiment of the present invention; and

FIG. 7 is a sectional view of a groove of a mobile phone according to athird embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

An embodiment of the present invention will be described below.

FIG. 1 is an external perspective view of a mobile phone which is anembodiment of an information processing unit according to the presentinvention.

The mobile phone 100 is a folder type phone which has a top casing 110and bottom casing 120 pivotably joined by a hinge 130, where the topcasing 110 contains a display screen 111, ear piece 112, antenna 113,etc.; and the bottom casing 120 is equipped with a operation panel 121,mouthpiece 122, etc. The bottom casing 120 of the mobile phone 100contains a V-shaped groove 123 adjacent to and just below the operationpanel 121. A fingerprint sweep sensor 124 is installed at the bottom ofthe V-shaped groove 123. Besides, on both sides of the V-shaped groove123 in the bottom casing 120 are a pair of cushion pads 125 whichconsist of a soft material (e.g., rubber) protruding a little above thesurface of the bottom casing 120 and serve as a cushion to prevent thetop casing 110 from coming into direct contact with the bottom casing120 when the top casing 110 is folded over the bottom casing 120.According to this embodiment, the cushion pads 125 also serve asorientation marks during fingerprint detection. Details will bedescribed later.

FIG. 2 is a plan view showing a part around the fingerprint sweep sensorof the mobile phone 100 shown in FIG. 1, FIG. 3 is a sectional viewtaken along A-A line in FIG. 2, and FIG. 4 is a partially enlarged viewof the part enclosed by a chain double-dashed line A in FIG. 3.

FIG. 2 shows three keys 121 a, 121 b, and 121 c located at the bottom ofthe multiple keys on the operation panel 121. The V-shaped groove 123 islocated just below the center key 121 b of the three keys 121 a, 121 b,and 121 c at the bottom of the bottom casing 120.

The V-shaped groove 123 contains a downward slope 123 a stretching awayfrom the key 121 b and an upward slope 123 b stretching further awayfrom the key 121 b. The V-shaped groove 123 also contains thefingerprint sweep sensor 124.

In order for the fingerprint sweep sensor 124 to detect a fingerprint,the user should apply a finger in such a way that the last joint closestto the fingertip is positioned on a straight line joining the twocushion pads 125 and move the finger along the downward slope 123 a andupward slope 123 b in the V-shaped groove 123 in the direction of thearrow indicated by the dotted arrow in FIG. 2. Consequently, thefingerprint sweep sensor 124 detects the fingerprint on the movedfinger.

As shown in FIG. 3, the downward slope 123 a and upward slope 123 b ofthe V-shaped groove 123 have different tilt angles α and β, whichsatisfy α>β. The tilt angles α and β are determined in such a way as toprevent the key 121 b in FIG. 2 from being pressed by mistake duringfingerprint detection and to detect the fingerprint reliably with thefingertip moved in contact with the fingerprint sweep sensor 124.

As shown in FIG. 4, the fingerprint sweep sensor 124 is located at thebottom of the V-shaped groove 123 under which lies a ridge line 123 cwhere an extension surface of the first slope 123 a and an extensionsurface of the second slope 123 b meet. Also, the top face 124 a of thefingerprint sweep sensor protrudes by a height b.

By placing the fingerprint sweep sensor 124 at this position, it ispossible to stabilize the finger pressure applied to the fingerprintsweep sensor 124 when the finger is moved along the first slope 123 aand second slope 123 b. This allows the fingerprint to be detected morereliably. However, the fingerprint sweep sensor 124 does not have to beplaced at this position and may be placed at another place in theV-shaped groove 123 where the fingerprint can be detected reliably.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a structure of the fingerprint sweep sensor124.

The fingerprint sweep sensor 124 consists of a one-dimensional linesensor 126, conductive pads 127 installed on both sides of theone-dimensional line sensor 126, bonding wires 128 which connect theone-dimensional line sensor 126 with the conductive pads 127, and a mold(not shown). The bonding wires 128 are installed bulging out on bothsides of the one-dimensional line sensor 126. The mold is formed in sucha way as to make the V-shaped groove 123 expose only an effective area Din the center by burying the bonding wires 128. In this way, theV-shaped groove 123 also works effectively to expose only the effectivearea D of the fingerprint sweep sensor 124 and hide the bulges on bothsides in the bottom casing 120.

Incidentally, description has been given mainly of the placementlocation of the fingerprint sweep sensor and surrounding structure(including the V-shaped groove) in a mobile phone, which are typical ofthe above embodiment, and description of other functions of the mobilephone has been omitted. However, the mobile phone as referred to hereinis irrespective of communication schemes and maybe, for example, a PHS(Personal Handyphone System).

Also, it goes without saying that the information processing unit asreferred to herein may be a multifunction unit equipped with not onlymobile phone functions, but also, for example, e-mail functions, camerafunctions, etc.

Furthermore, although a clamshell phone has been described herein, thepresent invention can be applied not only to clamshell phones, but alsoto various other types of phone. Furthermore, it can be applied to otherinformation processing units such as PDAs (Personal Data Assistants).

Next, other embodiments of the present invention will be described. Theonly difference between the following embodiments to be described andthe embodiment described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 5 is in the shapeof the groove where the fingerprint sweep sensor is disposed.Accordingly, the other embodiments will be described by referring toonly a figure that corresponds to and is used in place of FIG. 3 showingthe shape of the groove of the above-described embodiment. The referencenumerals shown in the following figures used in place of FIG. 3 are thesame as those in FIG. 3 and only the different features will bedescribed below.

FIG. 6 is a sectional view of a groove of a mobile phone according to asecond embodiment of the present invention.

In the above-described embodiment, as shown in FIG. 3, the first slopethat is the downward slope 123 a and the second slope that is the upwardslope 123 b are both planes. However, in the second embodiment, each ofthe downward slope 123 a and the upward slope 123 b is upwardly convexas a whole and these slopes have mutually different tilt angles.

FIG. 7 is a sectional view of a groove of a mobile phone according to athird embodiment of the present invention. In the third embodiment, eachof the downward slope 123 a and the upward slope 123 b is downwardlyconvex (upwardly concave) as a whole and these slopes have mutuallydifferent tilt angles.

As shown in these other embodiments, the downward slope 123 a and upwardslope 123 b is not limited to a plane. The slopes may be designed to anyshape as long as they are upwardly or downwardly bulging so as toprevent incorrect key operations and to detect a fingerprint withoutfail.

1. An information processing unit which is a folding unit and comprisesan upper casing equipped with a display screen and a lower casingequipped with an operation section, said upper and lower casings beinghinged to be freely opened and closed wherein: the lower casingcomprises, adjacent to the operation section, a groove which contains afirst slope stretching away from the operation section and slantingdownward and a second slope stretching further away from the operationsection and slanting upward, wherein a finger moves downward along thefirst slope and the finger moves upward along the second slope; thegroove comprises a fingerprint sweep sensor; and the first slope and thesecond slope have mutually different tilt angles, wherein an entiresensing surface of the fingerprint sweep sensor protrudes above an innersurface of the groove.
 2. The information processing unit according toclaim 1, wherein the first slope has a larger tilt angle than the secondslope.
 3. The information processing unit according to claim 1, whereinthe fingerprint sweep sensor is located in the groove in such a way asto hide a ridge line where an extension surface of the first slope andan extension surface of the second slope meet.
 4. The informationprocessing unit according to claim 1, wherein the upper casing comprisesan ear piece.
 5. The information processing unit according to claim 1,wherein the information processing unit is a portable telephone.